This Postsecondary Education Descriptive Analysis Report uses data from the National Postsecondary Student Aid Studies (NPSAS:96, NPSAS:2000 and NPSAS:04) to examine trends in Stafford loan borrowing among undergraduates. NPSAS consists of nationally representative survey data that focus on student financial aid and the enrollment and background…

Recent research on loan effects on student borrowers has focused on pre-college and post college behavior, neglecting the loan effects during the within-college period. This study integrated the student retention models and financial nexus model to investigate the effects of different kinds of financial aid on degree attainment of undergraduates…

While benefits of college matriculation are well-established, the portal controlling access to higher education is the institutional application. The bulk of the college application process takes place during a student's senior or 12th-grade year; however, parents and caregivers of high school students need to know that the quest for college…

The Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) was designed to encourage more young people from lower-income households to participate in post-compulsory education. This has been extended to other groups of young people, most notably those who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) or in jobs without training (JWT). This paper presents…

Although the use of loans to finance postsecondary educational expenses seems commonplace, the emphasis of the U.S. financial aid system on loans may limit college opportunity for individuals who are unwilling or unable to incur this type of debt. This study uses data from descriptive case studies of 15 high schools to examine four guiding…

Changing financial arrangements for undergraduates have led to a growth in widening participation research. However, hardly any studies explore gender differences in the impact of differential funding on students' sense of well-being, their financial coping strategies and their educational attainment. Our research shows that there are few gender…

Three universal demands characterize higher education globally: the demand for higher quality, for increased access, and for greater equity. In East Africa, where resources are highly constrained, no nation has been able to meet these demands on the basis of public expenditures alone. Instead countries have had to increase resources from nonpublic…

The National College Advising Corps, which started at University of Virginia, was initially financed in 2004 by a two-year, $623,000 grant from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, a Landsdowne, Virginia-based charity formed with a bequest from the late businessman who was best known as the owner of the Washington Redskins football team. Mr. Cooke died…

This paper requests comments by January 21, 1997 concerning a new application process for students applying for federal financial aid and a listing of need analysis issues concerning student aid to be considered as part of the reauthorization process for the Higher Education Act. Several possible viewpoints concerning need analysis and delivery…

This report analyzes increases in Minnesota's higher education tuition since the early 1970s, compares national and Minnesota tuition rates and trends, reviews the state's goals for federal Pell grants and how state grant money is allocated to individuals, determines whether students face undue barriers in applying for state grants, and considers…

An agenda for research on financial issues in graduate education is proposed for the National Commission for Student Financial Assistance, based on the stipulations of Public Law 96-374, Section 491, part (7)(A). Research needs are as follows: (1) to determine the extent to which students may be dissuaded from pursuing graduate education on…

Stage Two of the Title IV Quality Control Project is an integrated study of quality in five related Federal financial aid programs for postsecondary students. Section 1 of the paper establishes a framework for defining quality improvements, in order to identify the types of changes that would tend to improve quality across all facets of the…

This report outlines the progress and the plans of the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance, a group created by the 1986 amendments to the Higher Education Act to strengthen the federal student aid programs to ensure equal opportunity through access to postsecondary education. The report begins with descriptions of the Title IV…

Five options to simplify the needs assessment formula for Pell Grants are discussed, along with validation alternatives. Analysis focuses on three main effects of simplifications (data element reduction): the impact on the distribution of total Pell funds, the impact on individuals receiving Pell awards, and the impact of reducing error in the…

This manual is designed to instruct administrators of the Guaranteed Student Loan (GSL) Program in how to take every step possible to administer the program effectively and to minimize the program costs of serving the high risk student. It shows schools how to work with students throughout their time in school, create ownership of the loan(s) by…